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A beautiful X-type was offered to me to purchase. I am yet to see the car in person, this is the photo of the interior the current owner posted.
What I see is that the wooden part of the dash, the wheel, the gear box and the doors are slightly different. I know that the wheel was replaced.
Is this something to worry about or this normal? Car offered for me to buy. Should I worry about the different tones of the wooden parts?
Part if it might just be the different areas look different in the picture. You would really have to look at it in person. Might look better. The shift knob might just be the owner bought an aftermarket one and that was the closest he could get. Worry? I don't know there is anything to worry about. Ask the owner about it or maybe ask for additional pictures.
I am not familiar with the X-type. I had been curious if being the lesser expensive model, the X-type might have imitation but HenryK above answers that its real wood. In the XJ8, all of the wood veneer is a matched set so I imagine that it is also in the X-type. I cracked one while dismantling the door panel for a repair (they are a bit fragile, paper thin veneer glued over an aluminum or plastic form, and you have to know how and be very careful in removal). I went to a local Jaguar salvage operation where they had dozens of them hung on a string like a bunch of fish and sorted through their stock till I found a single replacement that was close. The average passenger in my car wouldn't likely notice the difference, but it glares at me often in just the right light. If you need to replace one piece, to be perfect, you'd likely need to source a whole set. But internet pictures and amateur photography should not be trusted. Better to see it in person for yourself, however, its a good thing to think about when buying, I bet a lot of buyers don't notice things like that until its too late. Good luck.
Obviously I need to see that myself in order to determine if they are the same tone or not.
Let me explain my question a bit based on your aswers:
If I see this kind of mozaic live, aside from the wheel and the knob, I need to ask the owner about it. It may even be original, it may as well be the result of an unfortunate crack, but it may also indicate damage to the car or replaced parts. Is it correct?
Your question is entirely valid, but first, the wood is real wood veneer, and different in every car...in a Jaguar anything that looks like wood is wood. And the wood in every Jaguar is a complete and matched set (but on an X-Type the veneer us not mirror-matched as it is in the more expensive models - it is matched for only for colour and grain). BUT on this particular car the dash panels clearly do not come from the same set as the console and door panel wood; the wood on the door and console is Sapelle (earlier cars had Birdseye maple which look quite similar).The dash wood is not...not sure what it is but perhaps should be call tiger stripe!
In any case it is very easy to change the dash panels to a set of Sapelle that would match more closely.
As a point of fact the gear knob is not and never did match the grain in the rest of the wood in any X-Type. The knob in this car is perfectly normal.
I would also add that the trim on the door panels has looked slightly different than dash , wheel, and gear surround pattern on every XType I’ve seen in my experience. That blonde gear knob looks just like mine which is a slightly different hue and pattern than my dash and surround. I actually think the picture of your prospective purchase has very nice pattern and stripes and has lots of character. Very nice
my interior, notice that lighting makes some look darker but the are all the same color with the exception of the gear shift knob which is not the same color.
The ash tray and gear surround are a very bad miss match in my car.
It was very obvious in the original advertisement.
I inquired about replacing them with new but the cost was far far to high for me.
The main dealer parts dept said they were equal price to the burr walnut on Sovereign.
I am not able to get to any of the major Jaguar spares days( to ensure a closer match ) so I have to live on mumbling about it.
Hi Henry.
Lots of ash tray covers and gear stick covers available on E-bay in all types of finishes and not to expensive.
They are both very easy to change.
Dear All,
I cannot thank enough for all our useful posts. Now I am confident knowing that it is in deed something to ask about but not something that I should worry too much, as this may be normal, and is managable to fix it if I want to.
Lots of ash tray covers and gear stick covers available on E-bay in all types of finishes and not to expensive.
I have not seen them in Bronze Sapelle Pommelle
Vast majority are obviously earlier finishes.
Very few if any accurately describe what is in offer.
I already have a mis-match and am not going to take a chance etc.
That is why I need to attend with my car at a large Jaguar spares event
This is an example of darker bronze total replacement and cost.
That looks like a plastic burr walnut type finish imitating the Sovereign
Wooden interior
